PITEOUS SEQUEL

Northern Advocate, 31 January 1928, Page 5

PITEOUS SEQUEL

SERUM ADMINISTRATION POURTEEN HAPLESS VICTIMS, EXPERTS NONPLUSSED. (United Press Assn. Copyright.) (Received 9 a.m.) MELBOURNE, ' This Day A conference of the Federal Health Department, under the chairmanship of the Minister, Sir Neville Howso, at which Dr Cumpstan, Federal-General of Health and director of the Commonwealth serum laboratories, was present, considered the Bundaberg * tragedy. Sir Neville Howse stated that it was extremely difficult to understand how a process which had been used to treat many hundreds of thousands of children all over the world and many thousands in the Commonwealth, without any sign of ill-effect, could be attended by such tragic results. He added that preliminary inquiries made it clear that the toxin and antitoxin mixture issued by the department was of good quality and free from any dangerous attributes. The inoculation of certain children at Bundaberg from the bottle itself, without any harm, showed that after its arrival at Bundaberg it was still in the same condition. It was clear that something had happened between the first and last inoculations. Everything would be done by the authorities to determine what had actually happened.

Dr Earle Page left for Bundaberg to investigate the position. In a statement he said that of every 135,000 children born in Australia yearly 500 'died of diphtheria before reaching school age, and though methods of sanitation and administration of anti-toxin had improved enormously in the last 20 years and enabled thousands of eases to be saved which previously would have died, the number of deaths from diphtheria at present was practically as great per thousand as it had ever been. General treatment having failed to arrest the disease, attempts had been made to secure immunity of the individual by injecting a mixture of toxins and anti-toxins.—A. and N.Z.

POISONOUS IRRITATION.

EXACT CAUSE UNDEFINED,

(Received 9 a.m.) BRISBANE, This Day,

A post mortem examination of the . Torrens Creek poisoning victims disclosed that death was due to gastric and intestinal irritation, but at this stage it is not definitely known whether the trouble* resulted from eating or .came from some, metallic source. Seven (not six) others were sent to hospital, and all are still in a serious condition, but hope is held out for their recovery, unless unforeseen complications arise.—A. and N.Z. ANOTHER DEATH. BUNDABERG GRIEF-STRICKEN. STREETS LINED WITH MOURNERS POST-MORTEM FINDINGS. (Received 1.32 p.m.) BRISBANE, This Day. Florence Windley, aged 11 years, another of the Torrens Creek poisoning victims, has died, making the death roll 34. Details of the Bundaberg tragedy show that pathetic scenes were witnessed at the hospital during Saturday when the doctors were working on the patients. Relatives remained in the hospital waiting for the latest tidings. In the cases of the Robinsons and Bakers, whole families were lost. Dr. Thompson, who gave the injections, said the method of making all injections since the coirimencemont was not changed. A week ago he inoculated his own son in the same manner without any ill-effects. Bundaberg never passed such a griefstricken day as yesterday. The whole city came to a standstill. Business houses and hotels closed their doors and people flocked to the city to pay their last respects to the innocent victims. Flags, everywhere, were half-mast and all schools closed. Women and children wept in thf streets and strong, hearty men were deeply moved as the tiny white coffins passed through the streets to the cemetery. In many cases the Mayor, Aldermen, and Shire Councillors acted as pall bearers. Five children, still in hospital, are regarded as out of danger. Dr. Schmidt, Government Medical Officer, conducted the post-mortem examinations and in each ease certified death as being due to acute toxaemia, following an injection of toxin an 1 anti-toxin mixture. Tho Melbourne serum is sent to all parts of Australia and New Zealand from the Federal serum laboratories at Royal Park, the output being about 5,200,000 units annually. Among the animals at the laboratories are horses, guinea pigs, rabbits, rats and mice, but horses are used most in the production. of the serum, in addition to making antitoxic sera for treatment of diphtheria and tetanus. —A, and N.Z. DOMINION EXPERIENCE. NOT ONE SERIOUS CASE. WELLINGTON, This Day. With regard to the fatalities in Queensland, Dr. Watt, Deputy Dirce-

tor of the New Zealand Health Department, says that many millions of children throughout the world have been immunised by toxin and anti-toxin without harmful effects. It was first used in New Zealand in 1919, and since 1924 has been given to an increasing number, till thousands of children arc now immunised. No case has occurred where any serious results have been noted, and it is definitely acknowledged that this method is the best preventive against diphtheria.—A. and N.Z.